Confection dispenser



July 31, 1956 H. BECKER 2,756,902

. CONFECTION DISPENSER Filed April 26, 1954' 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 N) i v Henry Becker IN V EN TOR.

BY only 3M July 31, 1956 H. BECKER 2,756,902

CONFECTION DISPENSER Filed April 26, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Henry Becker IN VEN TOR.

Fig. 3

July 31, 1956 H. BECKER CONFECTION DISPENSER 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 26, 1954 Henry Becker IN VEN TOR.

you; 3%

CONFECTION DISPENSER Henry Becker, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application April 26, 1954, Serial No. 425,509

6 Claims. (Cl. 221-202) My invention relates to improvements in dispensers for domestic use especially, although not necessarily;

The primary object of my invention is to provide a portable dispenser for confections at card, and beach parties, and the like, and on bedroom night stands and which is especially designed for easy quick operation by one hand to dispense the larger sizes of candies one at a time Without jamming and which will maintain a quantity of such confections in sanitary condition.

Another object is to provide a dispenser for the above purposes which is simple in construction, adapted for manufacture at a low cost and not liable to get out of order from prolonged use.

Other and subordinate objects together with the precise nature of my improvements will become readily apparent when the following description and claims are read with reference to the drawings accompanying and forming part of this specification.

In said drawings:

Figure 1 is a view partly in vertical section and partly in side elevation of a preferred embodiment of my invention with the parts shown in normal position;

Figure 2 is a similar view illustrating the parts in'dispensing position;

Figure 3 is a view in horizontal section taken on the line 33 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a view in horizontal section taken on the line 44 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary view in vertical section taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary view in vertical section taken on the line 6'-6 of Figure 3;

Figure 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view in perspective of the dispensing chute; v

Figure 8 is an enlarged fragmentary view in perspective partly in section of a first modified embodiment of my invention;

Figure 9 is an enlarged fragmentary view in perspective partly in section of a second modified embodiment of the invention; and

Figure 10 is still another enlarged fragmentary view in perspective partly in section of a third modified embodiment of the invention.

Referring to the drawings by numerals, and first to Figures 1 to 7 in the preferred embodiment, my improved dispenser comprises a substantially tubular bottom section 1 forming a housing, for a purpose presently seen, and formed with a raised internal circumferential flange 3, an upper front rectangular vertical discharge opening 5, a gravity feed hopper 7 in said upper portion, and an annular rim groove 9 surrounding the top of the hopper. The bottom section 1 is provided with an undercut front portion 11 forming a horizontal ledge 13 at the bottom of the discharge opening 5. Also, said bottom section 1 is formed at the top of said opening 5 with a forwardly and downwardly curved arcuate deflector plate 15, the purpose of which will presently appear, and with an enlarged base end 4.

nited States Patent 0 retreated July 31, 1956 "ice The hopper 7 is formed with a T-shaped discharge opening 17 in its bottom and front side in the rear of discharge opening 5, the discharge opening having a reduced rear horizontal portion 19 back of the ledge 13 and opening 5. A pair of laterally spaced and stepped vertical side walls 21 depend from opposite sides of the opening 17 and form between said openings 5, 17 a horizontally T-shaped throat 23 below opening 17 corresponding in shape to said opening 17.

A vertically rocking ejector scoop 25 working in the throat 23 and opening 5 is provided in the throat 23. The scoop 25 is pivoted intermediate its ends and adjacent its bottom to the side walls 21, as at 27, and is T-shaped in plan to fit in the throat 23 and is overbalanced rearwardly of its pivot 27 to normally rest on the ledge 13 in normal position with its bottom 29 in the bottom of throat 23. The T shape of the scoop 25 imparts to the same a narrow rear portion 31 working in the narrow portion 19 of throat 23 and a wide front portion 33 working in said throat 23 forwardly of narrow portion 19 and which projects out of discharge opening 5 and forwardly of ledge 13 and is provided with arcuate up standing sides 35 concentric to pivot 27. In the normal rest position of the scoop 25, it is closed at its front end by the deflector plate 15 which is concentric to the pivot 27 and the sides 35 of said scoop. The rear portion 31 of the scoop 25 is vertically elongated and provided with a rear face 37 concentric to pivot 27 to work in and close the rear end of throat 23.

A U-shaped thumb piece 39 straddles the sides 35 of the scoop 25 and the deflector plate 15 and is attached to said sides 35 or formed integrally therewith for use in rocking the scoop 25 into ejecting position.

A coil spring 41 in the section 1 has its ends connected to the bottom of said scoop and to the beforementioned flange 3, as at 43, 45, to yieldingly urge said scoop 25 into normal rest position. A transparent tubular container 47 surmounts the hopper 7 and is formed with a reduced shouldered bottom end 49 seating in the groove 9 so that said container is detachably attached to said hopper. I

A suitable removable cap 51 closes the upper end of the container 47.

At the rear of the discharge opening 5, a depending sealing lip 53 extends across and above the scoop 25 and is provided with an upwardly opening groove 55. The beforementioned thumb piece 39 fits in the opening 5 and against said lip 53 in the rest position of said scoop 25 to seal said opening.

A resilient member 57 of inverted U-shape in crosssection is fixed at one side 59 in said groove 55, member 57 having a comb toothed opposite depending side 61 extending transversely above the scoop in the opening 17 of the hopper 7. The purpose of the member 57 will presently be explained. Lip 53 and member 57 are within the hopper 7.

In operating the described embodiment of the dispenser, the container 47 and hopper 7 are filled with the confections to feed into the scoop 25. The scoop 25 is rocked clockwise as shown in full lines in Figure 2 and in broken lines in Figure 6 until its bottom 29 engages the comb toothed side 61 of said member 57. In thus rocking the scoop 25, the fingers of a hand are inserted beneath the ledge 13 and downward pressure is exerted by the thumb of the hand on the thumb piece 39. When the bottom 29 of scoop 25 engages said comb toothed side 61 of member 57, the scoop lies in a downwardly and forwardly tilted position so that its front end is below the deflector plate 15 and, as best shown in broken lines in Figure 6, the scoop is thus opened at its front end to eject by gravity a confection out of said end. Upon release of said thumb piece 39, the scoop will return to normal rest position. When the scoop 25 is being rocked into ejecting position as described, its rear end portion 31 rocks upwardly through the throat 23 to prevent confections from entering the scoop during the ejecting operation. The comb toothed side 61 of member 57 engages the bottom 29 of scoop 25 at the rear end portion 31 of the scoop to cushion rocking of said scoop into ejecting position so that said member 57 functions as a jam preventing means for said scoop and closes (said scoop in the rear of the discharge opening to prevent confections from being shoved by the fingers back into said hopper.

In the first modified embodiment shown in Figure 8,

a jam preventing member 63 for the scoop 65 is provided like member 57 except that member 63 is formed integrally with the front part of the hopper '67.

In the modified embodiment shown in Figure 9, the jam preventing member 69 is the same as in the first modified embodiment. The scoop 83 is provided with an upstanding rear wall 73. A resilient false bottom plate of rectangular shape has a downturned front end 77 attached in a transverse groove 79 in the bottom 31 of the scoop 83 and resilient rear end fingers 85 inclining upwardly and engaged under a transverse terminal flange 87 on said wall, said fingers coacting with the jam preventing means 69 when the scoop 83 is rocked into ejecting position to cushion such rocking of the scoop. Also, in this embodiment, the throat 89 and scoop 83 are of uniform width.

In the modified embodiment shown in Figure 10, the

jam preventing member is an arcuate plate 91 depending from a hinge 93 on the hopper 95 and is backed by a coil spring 97 interposed between said plate and hopper.

The foregoing will, it is believed, sufiice to impart a clear understanding of my invention.

Manifestly, the invention is susceptible to modification and right is herein reserved to such modifications as fall within the scope of the invention as herein disclosed.

What I claim is:

1. In a portable dispenser for confections and the like, a substantially tubular bottom section having an upper front vertically disposed discharge opening therein, a gravity feed hopper in the upper portion of said section formed with a bottom discharge opening extending rearwardly from said first named opening and T-shaped to provide a front opening portion of the same width as the first named opening and a narrow opening portion extending rearwardly from said front portion, a pair of vertical side walls depending from opposite sides of said second named discharge opening and forming a horizon- All.

scoop in the bottom of said throat pivoted intermediate its ends between said side walls for vertical rocking movement from a substantially horizontal rest position into a forwardly and downwardly inclined discharge position for gravity discharge of confections therein out of the same, said scoop having a T-shaped bottom for a working fit in said throat and said scoop having a front discharge end extending out of and rocking in said first named opening, a container rising from said hopper for confections for gravity feed into said hopper and throat and into said scoop, and a thumb piece on said scoop straddling the same in front of said first named discharge opening for rocking said scoop from rest into discharge position, said scoop having a vertically elongated depending portion fitting in the narrow portion of said bottom opening to close said narrow portion when said scoop is rocked into discharge position.

2. The combination of claim 1, and a front deflector plate on said section for the discharged confections curving downwardly and forwardly from the top of the first named discharge opening, said thumb piece straddling said deflector plate and sealing top and side edges of said first named opening when the scoop is in rest position.

3. The combination of claim 1, and resilient means in said hopper at the top of said first named opening engaged by the bottom of said scoop in its discharge position to prevent jamming of said scoop, and closing said scoop in the rear of the first named opening when said scoop is in discharge position.

4. The combination of claim 3, said resilient means comprising a comb toothed member.

5. The combination of claim 3, said resilient means comprising a spring pressed plate hinged to said hopper independing position.

6. The combination of claim 1 and means for preventing the scoop from jamming in its discharge position comprising a resilient member fixed in said hopper at the top of the first named opening, and a resilient false bottom plate in said scoop engaging said member in the discharge position of the chute.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

